Meaning & use
enlist
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Meanings
verbintransitive
To join the armed forces by choice.
Grammar: No object needed: 'He enlisted in the army.'
Patterns
- enlist in something
- enlist as something
She enlisted in the navy after college.
Many young men enlisted as soldiers during the war.
verbtransitive
To persuade someone to help you or support your plan.
Grammar: Takes an object: 'enlist a friend's help'.
Patterns
- enlist someone's help
- enlist someone in something
- enlist support
We enlisted the help of a professional translator.
The teacher enlisted several parents to organize the trip.
Word forms
| third person singular | enlists |
|---|---|
| past tense | enlisted |
| past participle | enlisted |
| -ing form | enlisting |
Common combinations
- enlist in the army
- He enlisted in the army at eighteen.
- enlist someone's help
- She enlisted her brother's help to move the furniture.
- enlist support
- The campaign enlisted the support of local businesses.
- enlist someone in something
- They enlisted more volunteers in the clean-up project.
Synonyms and how they differ
- join
- Join is the general word for becoming a member; enlist is used mainly for the armed forces or for getting help.
- recruit
- Recruit means to find new people for an organization; enlist often means to get a particular person's help.
- sign up
- Sign up is informal and used for courses, clubs, etc.; enlist is more formal and military.
Opposites
Word family
- enlisted adjective
- Having joined the armed forces, especially at a rank below officer.
- enlistment noun
- The act of joining the armed forces.
Commonly confused: enlist or enlighten?
enlist vs enlighten
Enlighten means to give someone understanding; enlist means to join the military or get help.
Practice
The charity _____ the help of several local businesses to raise funds.
Choose one answer.
'Enlisted the help of' is the correct phrase meaning got help. 'Enlisted in' and 'enlisted as' are used for joining the military, and 'enlisted to' is not used in this pattern.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “enlist”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.